An ultrasound diagnosis apparatus, an X-ray computed tomography (CT) system, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment, and the like are used as a medical image diagnosis apparatus. Besides, there is a treatment called radio frequency ablation (RFA), in which a puncture needle is inserted into a subject to irradiate a tumor with radio waves or the like emitted from the tip of the puncture needle. It is not only in the RFA that the puncture needle is inserted into a subject. The puncture needle may be used to take samples of diseased tissue.
For example, when ablation therapy is performed with an ultrasound diagnosis apparatus, a position sensor is attached to each of an ultrasound probe and a puncture needle. The positions of the probe and the puncture needle are measured based on information from the position sensor. The position of the puncture needle is displayed on a two-dimensional image generated by the ultrasound diagnosis apparatus.
Thereby, the operator can navigate the puncture needle with reference to the two-dimensional image generated by the ultrasound diagnosis apparatus, and insert it into a puncture target site such as a tumor or the like. Besides, in the RFA, ablation of tumor tissue generates gas, which makes an ultrasound image less visible. Even in such a case, the operator can check the position of the puncture needle with reference to the navigation image.
In conventional puncture treatment, there is a case where a puncture needle is selected and a position sensor is attached thereto just before the puncture. In this case, the operator may arbitrarily determine a part of the puncture needle to attach the position sensor. The puncture needle to be used and the position to which the sensor is attached need to be changed according to the position (depth) of a diseased site. Accordingly, the attachment position of the sensor may not be determined until immediately before the puncture.
If the attachment position of the sensor is optional, the position of the puncture needle to which the sensor is attached cannot be determined only by information from the position sensor. Therefore, the operator is required to enter the attachment position of the sensor prior to the puncture operation. For this reason, if it is difficult to determine the attachment position of the position sensor in advance before the start of examination, the operator is required to manually enter information on the attachment position of the sensor during examination or surgery. This is very troublesome and imposes a heavy load on the operator.